Implantable vascular grafts are used in medical applications for the treatment of diseased or damaged blood vessels, such as arteries and veins. Such treatment may be necessitated by conditions in the arteries and veins, such as a stenosis, thrombosis, occlusion or aneurysm. A vascular graft may be used to repair, replace, or otherwise correct a diseased or damaged blood vessel.
A vascular graft may be a tubular prosthesis for replacement or repair of a damaged or diseased blood vessel. A vascular graft may be used in the vascular system, urogenital tract and bile duct, as well as in a variety of other applications in the body. A vascular graft may be reinforced to open and support various lumens in the body. Such a vascular graft may be used for the treatment of stenosis, strictures and aneurysms in blood vessels, such as arteries and veins. Such treatments include implanting the vascular graft within the blood vessel to open and/or reinforce collapsing or partially occluded sections of the vessel.
When a vascular graft is inserted into the body of a patient, monitoring of the environmental conditions of which the graft is subjected, such as temperature and pressure, typically becomes more difficult. Also, the location of specific portions of the vascular graft, such as the distal end thereof, within the body may be difficult, particularly as increased lengths of the graft are inserted into the body.
Additionally, physical characteristics of the vascular graft which facilitate insertion of the vascular graft into the body of a patient may be less desirable after the vascular graft has reached the desired destination within the body. For example, a low profile of the vascular graft is typically preferred for insertion of the graft into the body. However, a larger profile is frequently preferred for use within the body after the vascular graft is fully inserted therein. Also, manipulation from outside the body of portions of the vascular graft which are within the body is typically desired. Such manipulation may provide for the bending or changing of the physical hardness of portions of the vascular graft which are within the body.